Extended producer responsibility is once again a hot topic in statehouses. | Rawf8/Shutterstock
The 2024 legislative season is already picking up speed, with more than 60 bills filed on recycling across the nation.
Continuing trends in bills are extended producer responsibility for packaging, batteries and paint, bans on many different types of single-use plastics and efforts in some states to repeal city- or county-level bans on products.
In addition, Jan. 18 marked the effective date for New Jersey’s post-consumer recycled content requirements and ban on the sale of polystyrene loose fill packaging.
Here’s a quick rundown by state of some bills that have been introduced as of Jan. 22:
Alaska:
Senate Bill 175 would create an electronic product stewardship program.
California:
SB 560 would establish a stewardship program for gas cylinder products.
Colorado:
House Bill 1069 would create an advisory group looking into electronic smoking device recycling strategies.
Florida:
S 0036 and H 0455 would require the Department of Environmental Protection to develop a comprehensive waste reduction and recycling plan.
S 0498 would end the preemption of local laws for regulating auxiliary containers, wrappings, disposable plastic bags and polystyrene products and give that preemption to the state.
H 0905 would require consumers and dealers to pay deposit fees for specified beverage containers and get those fees refunded upon redemption.
Hawaii:
HB 1585 would prohibit state agencies from purchasing or using polystyrene foodservice containers.
HB 1972 would establish an electric vehicle battery recycling and disposal program.
SB 2368 would require the Department of Health to conduct a statewide needs assessment to inform the future establishment of an extended producer responsibility program for packaging.
SB 2389 and HB 1993 would allow for the establishment of additional regional centers for the redemption of refillable beverage containers.
SB 2545 would amend the recycling goals under the Electronic Device Recycling and Recovering Act to be based upon the manufacturer’s overall market share in the state.
SB 2576 and HB 1897 would prohibit lodging establishments from providing personal care products in small plastic containers.
Illinois:
HB 4448 would ban stores or foodservice businesses from providing or selling single-use plastic bags and grocery stores from providing or selling single-use paper bags.
SB 85 would create a beverage container redemption system.
SB 1549 would create a wind turbine stewardship program.
SB 2816 would require public reporting of the types and volumes of material treated at authorized recycling facilities, composting facilities and municipal landfills.
Kansas:
HB 1446 would prohibit cities and counties from regulating plastic and other containers.
Maryland:
HB 168 would require producers of certain plastic products to pay an annual fee and would establish minimum post-consumer recycled content requirements.
SB 325 and HB 1 would create an architectural paint stewardship program.
Massachusetts:
S 554 and H 871 would create a producer responsibility program for electronic products.
S 570 would ban single-use plastic bags and single-use foodservice utensils, regulate the use of plastic bottles, explore extended producer responsibility for packaging and encourage composting.
Missouri:
HB 2419 would repeal the state’s ban on local governments regulating paper and plastic bags.
New Hampshire:
HB 1207 would ban foodservice facilities from providing disposable plastic utensils except upon customer request.
HB 1630 would create an extended producer responsibility program for packaging.
HB 1636 would create a container deposit system.
New Jersey:
Assembly Bill 426 (carried over from last year) would repeal a ban on providing or selling some single-use products.
A 1816 (carried over from last year) would prohibit the manufacture, sale, or promotion of consumer products containing microbeads.
A 2776 (carried over from last year) would exempt certain plastic materials processed at chemical processing facilities from laws regulating solid waste disposal and recycling.
S 208 (carried over from last year) would establish extended producer responsibility for packaging.
S 224 and A 2775 (carried over from last year) would set recyclability labeling requirements.
S 243 (carried over from last year) would create an electric vehicle battery management program.
S 964 (carried over from last year) would remove the ban on single-use paper and plastic bags by grocery stores.
New York:
S 4246 (carried over from last year) would enact extended producer responsibility for packaging.
S 8361 would require all state agencies and offices to cease purchasing single-use plastic water bottles and install water bottle filling stations in state buildings.
Rhode Island:
S 2051 would exempt reusable bags from the state sales tax.
H 7215 would mandate that foodservice establishments only provide single-use utensils to a customer upon request.
South Dakota:
HB 1037 would require the producers of wind and solar energy infrastructure to create an infrastructure stewardship program.
Utah:
HB 107 would amend the recycling facility transparency law to add new reporting requirements for haulers and MRF operators.
Vermont:
S 254 would include rechargeable batteries and battery-containing products under the state’s existing battery stewardship program.
S 273 would create an extended producer responsibility program for tires.
Virgina:
HB 228 would set recycling labeling requirements.
HB 745 would establish a mattress stewardship program.
Washington:
HB 1553 would create a battery stewardship program.
HB 1900 would require strategies to achieve higher recycling rates within Washington’s existing solid waste management system.
HB 2049 would create an extended producer responsibility program for paper and packaging.
HB 2068 and SB 5965 would require fashion companies to disclose environmental impacts and hit sustainability targets.
HB 2144 would create a container deposit system.
HB 2301 and SB 6180 would support better organics recycling systems.
Wisconsin:
SB 906 would fund education about rechargeable batteries and provide grants for collecting and recycling rechargeable batteries.